Creative Block, a Remedy

Recently I saw a beautiful painting by a watercolor artist who declared that she had only kept it by accident, in fact she stated that she'd thrown most of her bad work away.  I was horrified, not because I am a hoarder, in fact I love throwing things away, but because I have learned so much from my past work.  She also said that she hadn't painted in a long time and in her words indicated what sounded like a real creative block.  I believe that keeping our work is an important key in keeping the creative energy flowing.

The benefits of saving your work can't be overstated.  Being able to see where you've been artistically and comparing it to where you are now can be a major help when you've hit a wall with your work.  When artists get discouraged and feel like their work isn't where they'd like it to be, taking a look at past pieces helps keep that feeling in perspective.  Discouragement is a major block to creativity; looking back can be useful in keeping that channel open. Below I've included photos of some of my older work and some insights I've gained in reviewing them recently.

In the painting below I can see that I didn't really understand atmospheric perspective.  I was trying, but were I to paint the same scene today, I would know how to make my main subject stand out, the middle ground more believable and make the background be a supporting element instead of a competing one.  

Watercolor, 12" x 16", 2006

In this piece, I can see how much I've learned about contrasting elements.  Every element of this painting is as strong as the others.  There are no main players or supporting players, only one flat plane of subject.  Contrast would have helped this be a more successful piece.  

Pastel, 18" x 24", 2007

In the next picture a still life expresses the beginning of my understanding of color.  I can see that I had used layers of colors here and that at this stage of my development I was experimenting with building up the colors instead of using them straight from the tube or stick.  Comparing it to another still life done recently helps me to see how much I've learned about color.

Pastel, 18" x 24, 2009

This scene shows how I was handling my brushes early on in my watercolor journey.  I can look at it and compare it to something I've done recently and see that my skill with the brushes is greatly improved.  Being able to utilize my tools has improved my work in recent years.  

Watercolor, 12" x 16", 2007

I still have so much to learn.  When I sell or give away a painting I keep a careful digital record of it and keep it in a file. The rest of it goes into a flat file cabinet.  In a few more years I hope I will look at what I did in 2013-2014 and be able to see where more changes in my style began, or where I improved my technique and knowledge.  When I see work from my past I can keep times of creative blockage in perspective.  Instead of getting totally de-railed by those periods, I can get back to work fairly quickly and move on when I look back at where I've been.